Life Before Harry
by thefabulouskatie
Summary: A collection of one shots from the time before Harry Potter was given to the Dursleys. Stories of Snape, Sirius, Peter, Lily, James, and more. Stories of love, loss, and betrayal.
1. The Prophecy Revealed

**The Prophecy Revealed **

"Lucius, bring me something to drink. We all shall celebrate tonight." said Voldemort as he sat in a large armchair in front of the roaring fire in the great stone fireplace of the Malfoy mansion's living room. Many Death Eaters were there, celebrating the death of a Muggle family. Lucius Malfoy brought him a large glass goblet and gave it to Voldemort with a slight bow. Suddenly, a pale young man with long, greasy black hair burst in to the room, terror on his face. All fell silent.

"My Lord, I have news. Important news." said Severus Snape, panting as if he had ran a marathon.  
"Then out with it, Severus." said Voldemort.

"I think this sort of information should be told in private, my Lord." Snape said, glancing around the room suspiciously.

"Must you always be so dramatic? Fine, everyone out."

All the Death Eaters filed out of the room, grumbling.

"Severus, you have your privacy. What is this vital information you posses?"

Snape paused for a moment. "My Lord, I was at the Hog's Head and Albus Dumbledore was there... He was interviewing a woman for a job at Hogwarts. I listened through the door and she...she made some sort of prophecy." He paused here to catch his breath, looking terrified.

"My patience wears thin, Severus. Continue or be gone." Voldemort sighed dismissively.  
Snape gulped. "She said, 'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...' Then they found me, and I rushed straight to you."

Voldemort sat stock still for a moment. "I want you to find the birth dates of all the children of the Order members. NOW!" Voldemort roared, standing up. Snape hurried out of the room. Voldemort threw his glass at the wall with a scream of fury. He turned and began pacing across the room. A moment later, Bellatrix Lestrange poked her head tentatively through the door.

"My Lord, we saw -"

"OUT!" Voldemort screamed, turning on her. The door slammed shut. He returned to pacing.

Potentially, there was someone out there that could kill him. He could not have that. This child would have to be killed straight away, but who could it be? He stormed over to the door and flung it open.

"Find out the birth dates of all the children of the members of the Order of the Phoenix!" he yelled. His Death Eaters stared blankly back at him.

"NOW!" he screamed. "And don't come back until you have them all." The Death Eaters scurried from the hallway outside the living room. He slammed the door shut and returned to pacing. He was Lord Voldemort, the most powerful wizard of all time. He had done everything, everything to make himself as immortal as possible, how could anyone, especially a child, kill him? Impossible! Had he not used Legilimency on Snape, he would not believe it, and Snape would be dead. His pacing quickened.


	2. Informing the Potters

**Informing the Potters **

"Oh hello, Dumbledore! So nice to see you!" said Lily as she opened the door. Dumbledore looked grave.

"I doubt you will still feel that way at the end of my visit," he replied as he stepped into the Potter's home.

"What do you mean?" she asked. "Have they got someone else?" Lily's eyes widened in fear.

"Not exactly. Where is James? You both need to hear this."

"He's upstairs. I'll go get him," said Lily softly, then she walked up the stairs.

"Dumbledore wants to talk to us," she told James. Her face immediately told him something was wrong. He followed her down the stairs.

"Please sit," Dumbledore said. James and Lily sat on the couch and Dumbledore sat in the chair across from them. "As you know, last night I was interviewing Sibyll Trelawny for the position of Divination professor at Hogwarts. What you do not know is that during the interview, she made a prophecy concerning the demise of the Dark Lord."

James and Lily glanced at each other. "But this is fantastic news, Dumbledore! Why do you seem so grim?" asked Lily in confusion.

"The prophecy spoke of the person who could defeat Voldemort, and that he would be born at the end of July. It also said that he would be born to parents who have defied Voldemort three times." Dumbledore paused, sighing heavily. "I think it could mean your child." The Potters were frozen, so Dumbledore continued. "The rest of the prophecy went like this, 'The Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not. And either must die at the hand of the other, for neither can live while the other survives.'" He paused again, allowing them to absorb what he had just said. James and Lily sat motionless in disbelief. "I also think that this means that Voldemort will target all of you. This means that you will have to go into hiding. You may stay here, if you wish, and we can put you under the Fidelius Charm. Of course, you may pick your own Secret Keeper." Lily and James were still frozen in shock.

"But he's not even born yet." Lily whispered, barely moving her lips.

"I know. I'm so sorry this has happened, but happen it did. Now all we can do is prepare him for what is to come." said Dumbledore gravely.

"But you said you thought it could mean our baby, so this doesn't have to be his fate?" asked James.

"No, as of now the prophecy could apply to one other boy." said Dumbledore.

"Who?" Lily breathed.

"Frank and Alice Longbottom are also expecting a baby at the end of July."

The Potters sat in silence.

"You said that as of now it doesn't have to be our baby. Why?" asked James, wanting every detail.

"Because Voldemort has marked neither of them as his equal. Both are to be born as the seventh month died, and both of their parents defied Voldemort three times. Until Voldemort acts, we won't know which boy it means," said Dumbledore.

"So Voldemort gets to choose which boy must fight him and which boy gets a normal life?" asked Lily, outraged.

"Yes," said Dumbledore.

"But how will Voldemort know about the prophecy?" asked James.

"One of his Death Eaters overheard it. I suspect that he has relayed it to his Lord."

"Who?" they breathed together.

"Severus Snape."

Lily gasped in outrage. "How DARE he? I would think that he would have at least a faint glimmer of a soul left, but he doesn't! Condemning a child..." then she burst into tears. James patted her back consolingly.

"What can we do, Dumbledore?" James asked hopelessly.

"As I have said, you must go into hiding at once."

"The Longbottoms, they're going into hiding as well?"

"Yes. Both of you are in grave danger, and you should pick a Secret-Keeper at once."

"Sirius," they said together, Lily's voice watery with tears, James's voice hard with determination.

"I will contact him about it now, and hopefully perform the Fidelius Charm tonight. Please do not leave the house until I return," Dumbledore said, then swept out of the room, leaving the Potters alone in their despair.

_Author's Note: So I'm thinking this is going to be a collection of short one-shots in chronological order. Please tell me what you think; I'm sure there's room for improvement so constructive criticism is welcome. _

_Sorry I forgot to do this before, but I don't own Harry Potter._


	3. Voldemort's Decision

**Voldemort's Decision**

The door burst open, and two Death Eaters dragged in a small, trembling man.

"Why do you disturb Lord Voldemort at this hour?" asked Voldemort, rising from his chair in the deserted living room of Malfoy Manor. He was livid. No one disturbed Lord Voldemort when he wished to be alone. If it was not an emergency, he would kill all three. The room was messy, furniture strewn about from Voldemort's latest rampage. It was dark, as it was nearly midnight, but the stifling heat of early August kept the room warm.

"We've brought someone who could be of some use to us, my Lord." said Yaxley with a slight bow, holding the trembling man under his right arm. The other Death Eater had the man's other arm, but the man's toes still dragged on the floor.

"How so?" Voldemort asked shortly, his wand twitching in his hand.

"This here coward's part of the Order of the Phoenix. He can tell us who Dumbledore thinks fits the prophecy." said the other Death Eater excitedly. He could be in Voldemort's upper ring if this information was attained.

"Can you now?" asked Voldemort softly, relaxing a bit, slowly walking towards the man, who's trembling intensified. "Tell me, what is your name?"

"P-P-Peter P-Pettigrew."

"Who fits the prophecy?" asked Voldemort with the slightest twinge of excitement, staring down into the terrified face of Peter Pettigrew. He didn't answer right away. "Come now, Peter. Do you really want me to force it out of you?" Peter Pettigrew did not move. "I suppose I must, then. _Cr-_!"

"WAIT! Wait, I'll tell you!" Peter interrupted. "It's either Neville Longbottom or Harry Potter. Please, don't kill me!" he wailed, breaking into sobs.

"Fool, I wouldn't kill you until I had the information I needed. Now, do you know where either of these people are?" Peter was still sobbing. "DO YOU KNOW WHERE THEY ARE?" screamed Voldemort, pointing his wand at the center of Peter's forehead.

"They're in hiding, under the Fidelius Charm. I'm neither one's Secret-Keeper." he said through his sobs, his eyes wide in the face of Voldemort's wand.

"Who is? WHO IS?" Voldemort shouted when he didn't answer right away, pushing his wand closer to Peter's face.

"I don't know!" he wailed. "They won't tell anyone!"

"Then you are of no further use to me," he began to raise his wand.

"WAIT! I've always wanted to be one of your Death Eaters. Always! I've just been waiting for a time when I had good information to tell you. Please, please let be become a Death Eater, my Lord, please." Peter begged.

Voldemort paused, considering. The benefits seemed to outweigh the risks, if Peter ended up actually bringing him information, he could be useful, and he could always kill him later. "You can become a Death Eater, and I will not kill you, if you can bring me useful information. You two, take him away." Voldemort said dismissively, turning away.

"With pleasure, my Lord." said Yaxley with another bow and a sickening smile, then the two Death Eaters dragged Peter out of the room.

Voldemort was alone. Now he must decide which one the prophecy told of. This was a very difficult decision for Voldemort to make. He began to pace slowly in front of his large armchair. Did he think the prophecy referred to a pure blood boy, Neville Longbottom, or a son of a filthy Mudblood and a blood traitor, Harry Potter? Obviously, the Potter child was worth less, did that mean that it was not the child referred to in the prophecy? He could always make a clean job of it and kill both of the children... He supposed it all depended on who Peter got to be Secret-Keeper for first. Of course, if he killed one first, and it was not the one referred to in the prophecy, the Order would still assume that Lord Voldemort knew that the child he killed was the one who had the power to vanquish him, and the other child would probably be allowed to come out of hiding, making Lord Voldemort's job even easier. So it was decided, he would kill both boys. He couldn't just wait for the sniveling fool Peter Pettigrew to come with information, he must send spies. Voldemort allowed a small smile to creep across his face. Soon, nothing in the world could possibly stop Lord Voldemort, and he was ecstatic.

_Author's Note: So I know they're really short, but I've never been good at writing lengthy pieces. I just stop them where it feels right. There's about four or five left after this one until the story is complete. Thanks so much for taking the time to read my work! _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter._


	4. Switching Secret Keepers

**Switching Secret-Keepers **

"James, can I talk to you?" asked Sirius Black before he left the Potters' house after visiting their newborn son, Harry. He and James were standing near the front door, preparing to say goodbye.

"You always can," replied James, slightly confused. Sirius never asked to talk to him, he just talked. James wondered how serious the conversation that ensued would be.

"I've come up with a plan, one I think is fool proof," Sirius said with conviction.

"Go on," James said, frowning and crossing his arms over his chest. Sirius's plans could hardly ever be called "fool proof".

"Well, I'm a rather obvious Secret-Keeper. Everyone who doesn't know suspects me. If you were to switch Secret-Keepers now, you'd almost be sure never to be found," Sirius said urgently.

James raised his eyebrows. "And who do you suggest we switch to?" He asked, slightly taken aback.

"Wormtail," Sirius said bluntly. James's eyes widened in shock.

"Why him?"

"Don't you see? He's perfect! No one would ever suspect him, he's never been the most talented wizard, you know... and no one would be told about the switch, so you'd be guaranteed safety!"

"I suppose that's true, but do you _really_ think Wormtail would be the best choice? As you said, he's not the most talented, so he couldn't defend himself as well as you could, and he's not the bravest, so he might not even agree to it," replied James warily. While Wormtail had been his friend since his Hogwarts days, they had never been close like he and Sirius were and always had liked to leave well enough alone.

"You've got to ask. Now that Harry's been born, things are a lot more dangerous for you. This would guarantee safety for all of you! I really think this is the best course of action."

"Yes, Harry has changed things a lot. I'll talk to Lily about it, and to Wormtail." After a pause, he continued, "Speaking of Harry, Lily and I would like to make you his godfather."

Sirius's face lit up in a smile. "Really?" he asked.

"Really," James replied, smiling as well.

"Thanks James," Sirius said, beaming.

"You were the obvious man for the job."

"You won't regret it. Just like you won't regret switching Secret-Keepers. Promise you'll talk to Wormtail about it," Sirius said, not trusting his previous statement.

"I promise. Now isn't there a meeting of the Order you need to attend?"

Sirius groaned and clapped his hand to his forehead. "I completely forgot. I'd better get going then. Bye Prongs."

"Bye Padfoot," replied James regretfully, who was sick of being holed up in his house day in and day out. Sirius then left, leaving James to ponder what he had said. Was it really the best idea to change from Sirius to Peter? While a switch would definitely make any rumors false, could he really trust the lives of Harry and Lily to his cowardly friend? Perhaps that was why he was the best choice. He was so obviously incapable, he was perfectly safe. There were rumors of a spy being among the members of the Order, but it couldn't possibly be Wormtail, he would never have the courage to double cross anyone. The more James thought about the idea, the more he liked it. He ran up the stairs to tell Lily and to ask her opinion on the subject.

"Wormtail! I've got to talk to you," Sirius called to Wormtail after the Order meeting. The room was crowded with members hurrying off, so Sirius had to fight through them to get to Wormtail on the other side of the room.

"What about?" he asked after Sirius had gotten over to him. He kept is hands nervously folded against his chest and his eyes darted around the room. Sirius chose to ignore his obvious nervousness and proceeded with his plan.

"How would you like to be James and Lily's Secret-Keeper?" he asked, grinning widely.

Wormtail's jaw dropped, then he began to stutter incomprehensibly. He looked up, down, to the sides, anywhere but at Sirius' expectant face.

"Come on! I know you can do it! The Death Eaters would never suspect you, and I think it would keep Lily and James perfectly safe! Don't you want that?" Sirius asked, trying any method he could to get Wormtail to say yes. He had to keep the Potters safe. He had to.

He began to stutter, "Of course! Why... why would you ever... ever question..." his gaze dropped and he fiddled with his hands.

"Yes yes, of course you want the Potters to be safe," said Sirius impatiently. "So will you talk to James and Lily about it?"

Wormtail stopped fidgeting with his hands and looked Sirius in the eye. "Yes, of course," he replied without hesitation.

_Author's Note: I'd love to hear what you think. I try to keep every little detail in line with the books, so if you see any inconsistencies please tell me. I've only got about three more one shots to go. Thanks for reading!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter._


	5. The Betrayal

**The Betrayal **

"My Lord, my Lord, I've done it!" cried Peter Pettigrew as he burst through the door to dark sitting room of Malfoy Manor.

Voldemort was sitting in a high-backed armchair across from the grand marble fireplace with a few close Death Eaters discussing the recent death of the McKinnons. He slowly turned his head toward Wormtail, who tentatively edged farther into the room.

"And what might your fabulous achievement be this time, Wormtail?" replied Voldemort softly. The others laughed.

Wormtail blushed, but continued excitedly, "I'm the Potters' Secret-Keeper!"

The other Death Eaters' chuckles cut off abruptly. Voldemort, though, was not impressed. He could not rely on the word of a coward like Wormtail. He turned away slightly, examining his wand.

"Are you now, Wormtail," he said, uninterested, "And where exactly are they?"

Wormtail hesitated for a split second, nervously playing with his hands and glancing around the room. He suddenly had a flashback of James at school, smiling and carefree. Then he glanced back at Voldemort's face, which had turned back to face him in the space of time that he hesitated. He gulped audibly.

"They're in Godric's Hollow."

Something in Wormtail's face made Voldemort believe him. His head snapped back to the Death Eaters sitting with him. "All of you, out. I want to talk to Wormtail alone."

The Death Eaters filed out of the room quickly and silently, not wanting to anger Voldemort.

"Now tell me, Wormtail, where in Godric's Hollow?" he asked, standing and walking slowly towards Wormtail, who started to tremble.

"In a cottage near Bathilda Bagshot's house," he said without hesitation.

Voldemort could tell this was true, as he was using Legilimency. As he stared into Wormatail's eyes, his pupils grew larger and larger until they swallowed him whole. He could see rustling trees and dark hedges surrounding the small, rustic cottage. He smiled as he rushed back out of Wormtail's mind. "I'll set a date to kill them. You have proved yourself useful. Leave me now," he said, then turned away and sat down. Wormtail walked slowly out of the room and Voldemort heard the door close behind him. He was ecstatic. There would soon be no opposition, nothing in the way of his living forever. He had decided that the Potter boy had to be the one referred to in the prophecy, because as much as he hated to admit it, and how he killed anyone who asked, he was a half-blood himself. After a few minutes of happy pondering, there was a soft, tentative knock at the door.

"Enter."

Severus Snape walked slowly into the room. "My Lord," he said with a bow, then continued softly, "You promised a speech at the rally tonight. They will be terribly disappointed if you don't come."

"Ah, you are right. I will be there momentarily."

Snape, with another bow, then left, and Voldemort dissaparated soon after.

"My friends, victory draws near! Dumbledore's pathetic Order of the Phoenix is nothing, nothing against us! The McKinnons were not as powerful as they were rumored to have been. If those were their best fighters, bring us your worst Dumbledore! We shall kill them as easily as we have killed the McKinnon family! Give us your worst, and we will bring you down like the pitiful group of ignorant fools you are!" Voldemort cried. A roar erupted from the crowd of Death Eaters and other followers of Voldemort. He was very happy. Nothing in the world could stop him after he killed the Potter boy. Not Dumbledore, he was too soft, restraining himself from "evil" magic. In Voldemort's mind, there was no evil, no good. Only power. Nothing, nothing could stop him, and he was ecstatic. He left the cheering crowd and returned to Malfoy Manor to celebrate the wonderful news Wormtail had brought him

_Author's Note: Just two or three more, I'm debating which one to end the story with. Again, I'd appreciate it very much if you'd tell me what you think about any or all of the stories, whether you loved them or hated them or, worst of all, were indifferent about them. Thanks for reading!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter._


	6. Snape's Secret

**Snape's Secret **

"My Lord, may I speak with you?"

"What is it?" Voldemort replied to Severus Snape, who had just walked into the sitting room of Malfoy Manor, where Voldemort was sitting in his high-backed armchair alone. He was irritated at Snape for bothering him, no one came to Lord Voldemort unless he asked them to.

Snape walked slowly across the room so that he was standing in front of the gleaming white marble fireplace facing Voldemort. The sound of his shoes clicking with each step he took echoed ominously around the room. He paused then said, "I understand that you need to kill the Potter boy because of the Prophecy," he paused again, reluctant to go on. His sluggishness irritated Voldemort even more.

"Yes, and?" he said, fingering his wand menacingly.

"Must you... must you kill all of them? Wouldn't it be...unnecessary?" Snape murmured in a fair attempt at his usual greasy way, looking at the ceiling to avoid Voldemort's eyes.

Voldemort paused, stunned. His red eyes widened. "Unnecessary? You think it would be unnecessary to get rid of two very talented Order members?" he said, his voice soft and dangerous.

Snape stared down at his feet, shifting his weight uncomfortably beneath Voldemort's gaze. "I suppose not. But..." he looked up, his non-caring mask fell, and his face was pure agony. "But please, spare Lily."

Voldemort stared at him for a moment in disbelief. "Am I to believe that you, Severus Snape, have fallen in love with this filthy Mudblood Potter woman?" He murmured slowly as he stared harder into Snape's black eyes, trying to see his mind with Legilimency, but Snape was blocking him with Occlumency. Snape said nothing, he merely stared back at Voldemort, his eyes pleading. Voldemort was disgusted, yet also slightly amused. "She is not worthy of you, Snape. She does not want you. She loves another. She has a _child_ with another. Yet you ask me to spare her," Voldemort cocked his head. "You know I will not spare her. You know she will protect the boy, an obstacle that I will have to remove. You know that I would kill you for being with her. Yet you ask me to spare her." Voldemort could not understand why Snape would risk his rank and his life to ask for a favor of this magnitude. "There are many other worthy, Pureblood women, Snape. I will not spare the Potter woman," here Snape's face grew hard. "I will not spare the Potter woman," Voldemort repeated louder, sensing retaliation. "Go now, do not bother me any longer."

Snape swept out of the room silently, his cloak billowing out behind him as always, closing the door behind him with a resounding thud.

Voldemort did not expect Snape to try anything else to save Lily Potter. He was sure that Snape would forget about her quickly enough. As he had said, there were plenty of other women that were not marked for death. Dumbledore had said that he, Voldemort, did not understand love. Dumbledore was right, and Voldemort thought of how powerful that made him, compared to Snape's weakness for the Mudblood.

Voldemort never dreamed that in that moment he had lost one of his most powerful allies.

_Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter._


	7. Sirius' Mistake

**Sirius's Mistake**

"Wormtail?" Sirius called softly as he opened the door to the small shack of a house Peter was hiding in. "Wormtail?" he called again, slightly louder as he closed the door behind him. Why wasn't he answering? A small feeling of dread sank into his stomach as he proceeded through the house. "Wormtail?" he shouted, running through each room. He was nowhere to be found. Sirius cursed loudly and ran out of the house, knowing something was wrong. He had to go check on Lily and James. If Voldemort had gotten to Wormtail... He jumped on his giant flying motorcycle and sped towards the Potters' house. Or what was left of it. He viciously fought back tears as he examined the hole blown into the upstairs of his best friend's house. All his fault. And he knew what he had to do. But first, his feet pulled him to the front door of the cottage. He dreaded what he might see, but he had to check, just to be sure. His shaky hand stretched out in front of him and slowly pushed open the door. It was unlocked. He stepped over the threshold with his eyes closed, dreading what he might see. The house was silent. He slowly opened his eyes and froze. There was James, lying on the ground. Dead. All his fault. He sobbed and couldn't continue into the house. He stood there for what seemed like an eternity, not daring to move forward but not brave enough to turn back, when he heard a baby's cry and creaking floorboards upstairs. This broke his trance of guilt and grief. He slowly made his way upstairs, dreading the scene that he was sure to meet. When he reached the top of the stairs, he met a gigantic, hairy figure wiping his face with a filthy spotted handkerchief and carrying a small bundle.

"Hagrid," Sirius said hoarsely, surprised that he could still speak.

Hagrid said nothing, but pulled Sirius into a firm hug with the hand that was holding his handkerchief.

"Is...Is that Harry?" Sirius asked weakly, stunned that the baby was alive.

"Yep. Jus' got 'im outta the rubble. Poor little thing..." Hagrid then burst into sobs. Sirius was in no condition to comfort anyone, so he merely stood there while Hagrid composed himself.

When Hagrid had calmed himself a considerable amount, Sirius said, "Give Harry to me, Hagrid, I'm his godfather, I'll look after him."

Hagrid looked at him with pity. "Sorry, Sirius, but I've got orders from Professor Dumbledore, he said Harry was ter go ter his aunt an' uncle's. I'm ter take him there now."

"Hagrid, please -"

"No, now there's no use arguin'. Dumbledore told me ter take Harry, that's the end of it," Hagrid said softly but firmly.

Sirius sighed. "I suppose you're right," he said. Then an idea hit him. "Hagrid, take my motorbike to take Harry to his aunt and uncle's house, I'd like to help somehow." He paused before saying softly, "I won't need it anymore."

Hagrid paused for a moment. "Well, alrigh', if yeh really wan' me ter take it..."

"Yes I do, Hagrid, it's out front." He sighed before continuing, "May I see Harry for a moment, before you go?"

"O' course," Hagrid replied as gently as he could, handing over the squirming bundle.

The only thing that kept Sirius from breaking down was the thought of what he had to do now. As he stared at the baby, he whispered, "You look just like your dad, Harry." He slowly handed him back to Hagrid. "Good bye Hagrid," Sirius said before turning and walking out the door.

"PETER!" Sirius yelled down a heavily crowded street. Most heads turned in his direction, frowning, but one small man sprinted in the opposite direction. Sirius saw this and easily caught up to him. Sirius yanked Peter Pettigrew to a halt and turned Peter to face him. "HOW DARE YOU! THEY'RE DEAD! DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU! YOU DIRTY-" Sirius commenced to scream all the dirty names he could think of at Peter, who shrank away from Sirius's tight grasp.

"N-now Sirius, while James and Lily's death is a t-terrible tragedy, what w-would you have done in m-my place?" Peter replied, trembling.

"I WOULD HAVE DIED! I WOULD HAVE DIED!" Sirius screamed in his face. Peter cringed away. "THEY WERE OUR BEST FRIENDS! YOU SOLD THEM OUT TO VOLDEMORT AND NOW THEY'RE DEAD!" Sirius shook him here, and Peter shrank back even farther.

"Now be reasonable, Sirius-"

"REASONABLE? You want me to be reasonable? You killed our best friends and you want me to be reasonable?" replied Sirius.

"Yes. Yes, I-I do. You see, Sirius,-"

"Don't you DARE try to explain to me! You are scum, and I'll have to kill you myself-"

"That's where you're wrong, Sirius," replied Peter in a calmer voice.

"You see, I will not be dying today. Many will think that I'm dead, yes, but they will be wrong." Here he wiggled free of Sirius's slightly loosened, confused grasp and turned so that the crowded street was at his back. He shrieked, "Lily and James, Sirius, how could you?" and added a fake sob for good measure. Holding his wand behind his back, he screamed a horrible curse, blasting away the pavement behind him. He then muttered another spell under all of the screaming, cutting off his own finger, and morphed into a rat, leaving Sirius alone and confused. To everyone, it looked like he had performed the curse, with his wand still out, pointing where Peter had been moments ago. The Muggles were pointing fingers and running in the opposite direction. He was going to Azkaban. How fitting. He started laughing. He was going to Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit, but he was still deserving of the punishment. He had told James to switch to Peter. He had killed his friends. He was going to Azkaban. Sirius surveyed the wrecked street as he laughed uncontrollably. He was going to Azkaban. Dozens of Ministry officials apparated around him, grabbing his arms and restraining him. They were saying something, but he couldn't hear it over his laughing. They were taking him to Azkaban. He was going to Azkaban.

_Author's Note: This is the last one shot. I hoped you enjoyed it._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter._


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